Motorola unveils Milestone 3 (DROID 3) in China

This increasing number of leaks over the past few weeks were a dead giveaway that Motorola had a new flagship Android phone ready to be outed, and today the company took the wraps off its third-generation headlining act: the Milestone 3. Here in the U.S., we know the Milestones better as “DROIDs,” and we’re very confident that Motorola’s latest superphone will get Verizon Wireless CMO Marni Warden’s DROID stamp of approval soon enough. In the meantime, we get to sit half way around the world and admire this sleek smartphone from afar. Beneath the phone’s familiar facade lies a dual-core processor, a 4-inch qHD display, Android 2.3 Gingerbread, an 8-megapixel camera with 1080p HD video capture support, 16GB of internal storage and, of course, a slide-out QWERTY keypad. The Milestone 3 will launch in the third quarter in China, and availability elsewhere has not yet been announced. Motorola’s full press release follows below.

Motorola Mobility and China Telecom Introduce the Third Milestone to China

BEIJING – June 17, 2011 – Motorola Mobility Technologies (China) Co., Ltd introduced XT883, the newest and most advanced member of the powerful Milestone family, today at China Telecom’s CDMA Summit and 2011 e-Surfing 3G Handset Trade Fair. Setting a new milestone for speed, XT883 is a mobile powerhouse, delivering uncompromising Web, email and media content to people in China and around the world. The individual with this device in hand will become a digital trailblazer, channeling the strengths of the device to power through their day.

China Telecom’s standing as the world’s largest CDMA operator makes its annual handset trade fair one of the most important for the industry globally. Held in Guangzhou, the show sets the stage for China Telecom’s coming year, and is a fitting venue for the unveiling of the XT883 in China. The fair will be open until June 19th.

With a powerful dual-core processor, the XT883 is twice as fast as industry-average single-core processors, enabling users to simultaneously run apps, stream media, talk, email and surf the Web, all without delay. A permanent number row on the top of the thin QWERTY keypad lets users type and text faster and more accurately without the need to always hit the ‘ALT’ button. And with a 4.0-inch brilliant touchscreen display, XT883 showcases even clearer photos, Web pages and video content than any Motorola Milestone device before. Enhanced security features enable users to access corporate emails, documents and calendars, with no need to wonder if their IT departments will approve.

“Motorola’s Milestone line has already been a great success in China, and XT883 is a much anticipated addition to the family,” said Ma Daojie, director of the China Telecom Device Management Center. “We are delighted to introduce XT883 here in Guangzhou at our most important trade show of the year. The launch represents a genuine milestone for China Telecom’s partnership with Motorola, and for our combined commitment to bringing great mobile experiences to Chinese consumers.”

“The Motorola XT883 enables even the most productive people accomplish more,” said Frank Meng, corporate senior vice president, and president, Greater China of Motorola Mobility, Inc. “The Milestone brand invokes a sense of advanced intelligence and amazing speed, and we wanted to build upon that standard. We are happy to continue the Milestone tradition in cooperation with China Telecom with the introduction of XT883 in China.”

Marvel at Amazing Media Capabilities and ConnectivityXT883 offers loads of features for extraordinary entertainment and functionality. Users can leave their digital cameras at home and still capture their adventures with a powerful 8-megapixel camera with flash and digital zoom, and use the device’s front-facing camera to video chat with friends, family and coworkers, whether with Wi-Fi or a 3G connection. It’s easy to shoot videos and play them back in 1080p HD brilliance. Users also have the benefit of Adobe Flash 10, allowing them to stream Web content, videos and games on the most popular video player available today. And all of this is delivered on a generous and stunning 4.0-inch display.

XT883 runs on China Telecom’s e-Surfing 3G network, which enables an effortless Internet experience so you can quickly browse content-rich web pages, watch online videos or stream music. SHOP4APPS China, Motorola’s own app market designed specifically for users in China, offers access to the information you need and the games you want with thousands of specially selected apps available for download or purchase right from your XT883 smartphone.

XT883 supports integrated smart technology so your phone and your dock remember what features and functions you want. As a user transitions environments throughout the day, XT883 adapts its features automatically based on the dock it’s connected to and pre-defined settings. For example, when a user connects his or her XT883 into a HD Dock in the bedroom, the device automatically adjusts to pre-defined settings, such as lower screen brightness or an alarm clock. When moved from the bedroom to the car dock, XT883 can automatically display GPS navigation and stream a pre-selected morning radio program, giving users the experience they desire.

XT883 empowers users to manage business instantly, intuitively and securely – from anywhere in the world. Never be out of the know with work issues by keeping up with corporate email sent directly to the device. Users can keep track of their schedule through a full calendar and they have the ability to see if colleagues are busy and initiate new meetings. Users can download, review and edit documents, presentations or spreadsheets with a pre-loaded Quick Office. The large 4.0-inch display makes it easy to see the document with little scrolling or panning. Additionally, the five-row QWERTY keypad makes it easy to quickly type up responses to emails, and there’s no need to wonder if the IT department will approve XT883, as the device is fully Business Ready with security, password protection, virtual wipe and encryption requirements.

Key Features and Specifications:

A dual-core processor capable of opening web pages twice as fast as most other smartphones, rendering games faster, supporting 27% faster multitasking than the previous version, and displaying HD video on big-screen TVs

Runs on Android 2.3 (Gingerbread), the latest operating system from Google

4.0-inch qHD display, offering high resolution and 24-bit color, making it easier to read indoors and outdoors

Combined five-row QWERTY and touchscreen keypad for faster and easier typing and texting

8-megapixel rear-facing camera with an LED flash, 1080p video-capable

Front-facing camera for video chat

Up to 32GB of storage (16GB internal) – enough to store thousands of songs, photos and movies

Looks nice… Front facing camera looks like. Would like to see what it looks like open.

http://twitter.com/SJFee Sean Fee

Definitely: “Front-facing camera for video chat”

5-Row keyboard I hear.

Chicol1090

I really like the way it looks. I dont like the lock button in the center, like on X, but it wasnt too hard to get used to.

Josh Rabinowitz

Wonder if moto decided to unlock bootloader….. prob not :(

Chicol1090

Complain to Verizon and Google.

Anonymous

*correction*
Complain to motorola. VZW has stated they don’t give a fuck and Google says they want everything to be open.

Chet Stovepiper

no 4g eh?

Anonymous

Did they seriously remove the dedicated camera button from this phone? Are you fucking kidding me? Well, Motorola is making my decision to not give them any more of my money easier and easier…

Chicol1090

Is a dedicated camera button really what makes or breaks a phone for you? I dont think ive ever used mine on my d1 or my d2.

Anonymous

The dedicated camera button isn’t a dealbreaker in and of itself. But it’s just another example of Motorola constantly doing things that I don’t like. I never took a picture without using mine, on the Droid 1 or the Droid 2. It just works better for me. Of course, everyone’s moving away from them now. I mean, you’ve got a 5 row keyboard, but putting a dedicated camera button is going to make it too bulky? Who’s making the decisions? What are they smoking? Can I get some?

Anonymous

I don’t understand all the Moto hate. They’ve already announced that they’re going to be unlocking their bootloaders – both existing phones and future phones, the build quality on their phones far surpasses the other two major Android manufacturers – Samsung and HTC, and the RF and voice quality, which tend to get short shrift these days, is superior. With the unlocked bootloaders it’ll be a short time before custom Blur-less ROMs will be available removing the only one major drawback of Moto phones.

Anonymous

– The fact that they did it in the first place
– The fact that they’re the last ones to get rid of it
– WHAR DROID BOINOCI WHRA
– Don’t-call-it-MOTOBLUR

The hate isn’t forward-looking. Motorola has used some pretty words about what they’re going to do in the future, but we’re tech aficionados. We all know that words are basically worthless. The only things that matter are actions.

HTC has always taken a “wink wink, nudge nudge” attitude towards the bootloader. They briefly locked it, came to their senses, and unlocked it again. Samsung has gone so far as to give their phones to ROM makers (specifically, the makers of CyanogenMod) with the express desire of having CyanogenMod work properly. Motorola locked down their phones so hard that CyanogenMod is literally just now starting to support the DX/D2, almost a full year after the phones were released.

That is why there’s so much hate.

Anonymous

” They’ve already announced that they’re going to be unlocking their bootloaders

and this will be when ??

http://twitter.com/dberkowitz David Berkowitz

When will their Droids have NFC already?

Jerad

Funny, because this phone has everything I want as an upgrade to my original Droid slider.

Except the locked bootloader and ROM. Which is a dealbreaker.

Anonymous

Well, the locked bootloader is unknown there…

Jim Davis

What about the pentile display?

Jim Davis

Rumor says that it has the same pentile display that the X2 has. I love my Droid 1, but I’m likely to pass on this one. Have to see what the display looks like in person.

Anonymous

This phone will be a killer if it has the LTE radio. Why build such a great phone and not put the biggest selling point for Verizon in it, the LTE 4G radio??????????????